CYCLING 170 miles in three days was the toughest physical challenge I’ve faced.

Popping out after work for a 25-mile training ride to and around and Vale of Belvoir and back, I’d think ‘that wasn’t too bad, this is going to be fine’.

But the relentless hills and wet and windy weather during our Coast to Coast ride were tough.

I cycled with my dad, Mick Baker, and friends Jez Watson and Pete Smith on the Way of the Roses route from Morecambe to Bridlington, joined for the first 20 miles or so by former Journal deputy editor, and cycling enthusiast/addict, Bob Hart.

At the finish point, we all agreed it was a great experience, but it hadn’t come without its bleak moments!

I’ve never been so miserable than on the second day, struggling uphill as the rain pelted down and with the wind hitting us full on. And a glimpse at the faces of other cyclists who gathered for a warming cuppa and to dry off at a cafe en route showed the misery was matched!

But all that paled into insignificance on the third and final day as the sun shone and we rode into Bridlington for well-deserved fish and chips and a ice cream cone. Well, we were at the seaside!

I’m sure we all felt an incredible sense of achievement. I am proud to have raised around £400 for two local great causes - Grantham LIVES and Grantham Rescue of Cats and Kittens (ROCK).

Meanwhile, Jez, from Newark, raised £600 for Beaumond House Community Hospice in Newark. My dad, from Long Benington, raised an incredible £4,500 for the hospice.

He said: “It was tough going for all of us over the three days with the wind into our faces, but the driving rain on the Sunday was particularly difficult.

“But we all had our personal challenges which we overcame. I thoroughly enjoyed it and will be looking for a new route to tackle in the future.”